Highway to Happiness: Scenes from a Restaurant

Back when the Road Trips first met we were four states away from each other, so weekend visits were a big deal. That first weekend together we started with a casual dinner out—nothing like a table of food between each other as a hedge against awkward silences—and since we were getting married the same weekend of our first date, it seemed only natural to revisit the site of that first date: La Fiesta Mexican Restaurant.

After going back to the room for a moment to collect ourselves, it was a caravan back to town for dinner. The downside to starting the rehearsal at 4:00 PM meant that we were heading back into Tallahassee during the “rush hour” traffic on a Friday night. The light rain had also turned into a bit of a deluge, so any time we gained by finishing the rehearsal early was balanced out by the cautious speed during the commute.

But inside the tortillas were warm and the margaritas (for those who indulged) were cold (and two-for-one). Since our group was fairly small (12 people total) we’d called ahead a few weeks prior to give them a heads up, but true reservations weren’t necessary. By the time we arrived there was already chips, salsa, and queso on the table, and people were well into their first round of beverages, so we just slipped into our seats let the tension roll off of our shoulders.

With no bridal party to gift or speeches to give, it was a low-key evening spent watching our families blending together and chatting about I-don’t-even-know-what, but everyone was happy and smiling and trading stories and jokes. About the only contention that night came when we informed the server that Roadie and I were handling the check—both Mama Leadfoot and Dr. Aunt looked at us like we’d lost our minds, but we explained that we invited them all to dinner, we’d planned on picking up the tab, and that’s what we were going to do.

Of course, the upside to revisiting the scene of our first date is that, like so many Mexican restaurants, the menu is truly economical so the budget wasn’t exactly stretched by this, even after leaving a generous tip. After that it was back to the Plantation for a few last-minute to-dos before the last sleep as a Miss!

comments

I thought that restaurant looked familiar… good old La Fiesta! I got well and truly snookered on their margaritas with the rest of my class after my last nursing school exam! What a great spot for a rehearsal dinner!